The present invention relates to dispensation of a measured amount of the contents of a container, and in a preferred embodiment, a dose of toothpaste from a tube.
Ordinarily, toothpaste is packaged in flexible tubes with the toothpaste dispensed by squeezing the tube. Such tubes have no provision for limiting the amount dispensed per squeeze. An excessive dose of toothpaste is, of course, wasteful.
New formulations of toothpaste include peroxides, baking soda, fluoride, and so forth that can be hazardous to children so that it is desirable to limit dosages of these toothpastes.
The prior art includes U.S. Pat. No. 5,447,255 directed to a toothpaste dispensing apparatus in which the tube is inserted into a mechanism for rolling the tube for dispensing a controlled quantity of toothpaste. It would appear that the cost and complexity of use of devices of this kind impede consumer acceptance.
In another aspect of using ordinary toothpaste tubes, a pocket of air resides above the body of paste remaining in the tube. In dispensing toothpaste, additional squeezing is needed to expel air ahead of the toothpaste. This condition complicates design requirements for dosage dispensers because the squeeze needed to dispense a given dose varies with the amount of air in the tube ahead of the remaining paste. In addition, when exposed to air, the paste tends to dry and becomes resistant to the action of a dispensing mechanism.
Accordingly there is need for a dosage dispenser particularly suited for toothpaste tubes wherein the the dispenser is the tube cap; is simple to fabricate and operate; eliminates presence of air in the tube ahead of the remaining paste; delivers a fixed dose of paste for each actuation; and functions as a child-proof safety cap.